Rogue
by The HongKonger
Summary: Jane is after the creature that took away his family. Lisbon is a Sorceress who is after the man causing havoc on Earth. Cho and Co are caught up in this struggle for peace and revenge. TM with some Magical Wizardry. Completely AU with potential Jisbon.
1. Chapter 1

**The Other World**

_**Jane**_

The lively music mixed with the stench of alcohol and men wafted around the corner street bar and out into the grimy alley filled with stray cats and abandoned rubbish. The screams and shouts of human enjoyment bounced off the faded brown walls that covered the alley and a single figure ceased his pacing. His eyes shut to listen to the drunken giggles of men away from home and opened his mind:

"I should really be getting back, Lucy would be worried..."

"Should I tell Gracia about Eliza?"

"I shouldn't order another beer. My kids hate me, my wife's dead. What the hell…"

He shut his mind and accepted that he had no right to enter the place where men go to forget. He did not need to forget, he needed to remember. Remember the things that had happened to him over the past five years. The loss of his wife, the death of his child. Events that would – should, _must_- forever plague his memories until the day he dies.

He grew up believing that he was invincible. People like him had adapted to become a superior being to humans. It was because of this notion the he ended up believing that no matter what he did everything would turn out in his favour.

How wrong had he been, and he realized this first-hand when he came home from a night of running amuck to find his wife and child slowly fading away, their equivalent to death. He stood in denial as his child let out an ear-piercing scream before she vanished into nothing.

Around the world, the tales of murdered so-called 'immortals' came to light and that Patrick Jane was the only one to have survived the attack. But knew he hadn't survived. Not really. He was forced to endure living hell without his lover or his child.

He stood in the bright artificial light that streamed out the window of the bar for a moment, before turning tail and leaving the alley to return to the empty streets of a Tuesday night. He pulled his coat tighter around his body against the autumn chill and continued down the road.

He stayed in the shadows, a ghost among humans and a fallen angel among immortals. He could hear intoxicated slurs of obscene language float out of open windows into the night air.

And he started thinking.

_Where the hell did I park my car? I swear it was here an hour ago..._

"Do you know where he is?"

He was quickly threw out of his frivolous thoughts at the sound of the voice. Deep, echoing and completely foreign to him, partnered with a sudden iciness that seemed to reach through his every vein. He spun around, surveying the streets lit by the pale yellow hue of the street lights. It was absolutely deserted.

"Hello?" He called gently into the darkness, cautionary.

Silence.

After waiting a few moments for the mystery voice to reappear, he shrugged and walked off in the general direction where he parked his car.

_That was weird..._

"Well, you're not exactly the average Joe either, are you?" The echoing voice returned. A sharp chill sparked its way down his spine.

"What are you?" He asked in a trembling voice.

As he said that, he saw an older lady, thickly wrapped in a winter coat walk past him with a scandalized look on her face. "Crazy." He heard her mutter as she passed him.

After a few moments in the silence, he tried again. But this time, he didn't speak.

_What are you?_

"Does it matter?" The voice echoed through him.

_What the hell? Get out of my mind._

"You sold him their souls."

_What are you talking about?_

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. You will tell me where I can find him."

_That's not going to happen pal… I'm guessing you're one of those creepy gits who think they're so much better than the rest. As if you will ever be anything more than conspiracy theories. Humans have always dominated, and they always will._

"I wouldn't be so sure."

And with those words and a last icy chill that overtook him, the echoing presence was gone.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Rigsby, Van Pelt, Cho<strong>_

Madeline Hightower looked at the television; a story flashed across the screen, informing the viewers of the latest horrifying crime that had taken place in Sacramento, California.

The poised and regal being that she was – only a modest 300 years old – sighed for what felt like the thousandth time that day. She found that human stupidity never ceased to amaze her and at first, she found it amusing, but after a long enough period in her position it had become nothing more than a burden and an annoyance. She had to go through every suspicious case that suggested inhuman influence.

Hightower was the head of the SBI, the Supernatural Bureau of Investigation; an independent sister organization of the CBI. Very few people knew of their existence, mainly the president and other 'importants', as she liked to call them. As she stood in front of the screen, she sensed other agents looking at it over her shoulder.

"Something wrong, boss?" A worried voice asked. She turned to look at the enchanting face Agent Grace Van Pelt.

"Looks like one of ours, Agent." Hightower said solemnly. Van Pelt watched the screen more closely and noticed that the man lying on the ground wasn't dead, just blankly staring ahead like he was daydreaming, despite the futile attempts of police officers trying to shake the man back into reality. Most of the information that the news reporter was trying to convey was drowned out by the angry honking of horns as the entire road was closed up and people were trying to get to work.

Several of the agents looked borderline terrified at the pixilated images. Many of them were still young – rookies, only several decades old - and the prospect of going up against someone with mind-abilities as strong as these were almost unheard of and truly terrifying.

"Probably the work of an Animus." Agent Kimball Cho murmured quietly.

"Animus?" Agent Wayne Rigsby questioned as he turned to face his fellow agent.

"The ancient word for mind reader. Well, this one looks more like a mind invader. They have the ability to get inside your head and rip information from it. In most cases, you leave behind a vegetable, like this man, once the 'ripping' is completed. They may as well be dead." Cho said almost darkly like the potential brain fryer was god's evil creation.

"So like Inception?" Rigsby inquired. Cho just raised his eyebrow and shrugged.

"Is there any way we can trace the Animus?" Van Pelt asked. She took note of the sour expression over her boss's face and immediately knew the answer.

"Unless he was stupid and performed his magic in front of a surveillance camera, only a tracker would be able to find him, and you know how hard they are to get a hold of. Not only are they slimy and not very trustworthy, they require a lot of money and it's just money this bureau doesn't have." Hightower said.

"So we just have to leave this one to the human feds?" Rigsby stated.

"Unfortunately. Either way, there is nothing we can do for the human. My biggest question is what information did he have locked up inside his brain that an Animus went after him."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Lisbon<strong>_

She stood behind the black and yellow tape that cut off the rest of the world to the crime scene. A few feet from her, the victim lay; his head bashed apparently so hard that he couldn't even remember his name. The problem was the bashing hadn't caused a single bruise, nor was there a drop of blood spilled.

It didn't make sense.

It was downright bizarre.

That's because it wasn't a case of physical assault.

The moment the news of a suspicious beating had made its way through the grape vine of the Underworld, Teresa Lisbon immediately went to the surface to investigate. It didn't take her more than a minute to realize that the man had been a victim of an Animus and had his brain turned into mush. She frowned slightly before setting off towards her black Tunero, her coat flapping in the wind behind her.

She made her way to the country club that was ironically called the Dragon's Lair, although the last time she had seen a dragon was back in the 17th century. The steel gates were black with a tint of red and unlike most country clubs, it didn't seem very welcoming.

She drove up to the entrance and was stopped by a guard.

"Can we please see some iden…" The security guard began, but he stopped right in his tracks when the car window rolled down, revealing Lisbon. "Ah, Miss Lisbon, business or leisure?"

"Business, Giovanni; I'm looking for a tracker." She said.

"Of course, go on ahead. Did La Roche buy you another car? I really liked the Statesman." Giovanni said as he walked towards his guard box to open the gate.

"Yeah, so did I. Some bastard was chasing me and I had to ditch it." She said to Giovanni's back.

"Ditch meaning-"

"Drive it into a lake, if you must know." Lisbon said as she rolled her window up and stepped on the accelerator pedal. She was able to edge half a meter closer to the gate, but had to wait for the gates to open wide enough for the car to fit through. Giovanni knocked on her tinted window and she rolled it down.

"Sorry, we've been trying to save up for a new gate, but well… we've got other departments that are quite costly."

"Let me guess, people keep blowing rooms up." Lisbon said with an amused smile.

"Blowing up, setting ablaze, dousing it in water you name it. Costs a fortune. Could they at least take their pride battles outside?"

"Good luck with that." She said and continued down the path towards a large two-story building that looked nothing like a dragons lair although Lisbon thought it would have been very clever if the walls were made out of stone instead of the modern day plaster and wood. She parked in the car park and swiftly made her way inside.

The Dragon's Lair was a country club that was invisible to the human eye and as long as your car was registered, humans were unable to fully realize the vehicle on the road. They would know it was there but they wouldn't pay any attention to it so no humans realized several cars filled with not-so-human people turning off down a side road. It was one of the only clubs that only allowed the modern day Wizard. Several heads turned when Lisbon walked in and small talk was exchanged. Lisbon could hear her name being said, but ignored it; her mind was focused on one mission.

"She's that demon girl, right?" A dainty voice whispered loudly to her friend.

"Nah, she's one of us but she hangs out downstairs. Weird, isn't she?"

"Why does she hang out with demons?"

"I heard that she ran away from home."

"Well, your wrong, it was because her mother was murdered and she's since been out for blood ever since."

"She's crazy."

"Crazy yes, but she's also determined as hell, no pun intended."

"Apparently she's brilliant. Her mother was a Sorceress, magic that can only be passed down through the female bloodline. I heard that she can destroy you with a thought."

"If that's true, I'll keep out of her way."

"That's good advice. I remember when she was younger; she was much more lively then. She had a lot of potential; but that was centuries ago. Everything was ruined when her mother was taken away from her." A tired voice broke into the unnecessarily loud gossiping session. Everyone within earshot looked at Virgil Minelli in disbelief.

"How do you know her?"

"I took her in when I found her lying next to her mother's cross. She refused to go home and I was in no place to take care of a child so young, so I had to give her away to someone I trusted." Minelli said. "Or someone I thought I could trust."

"I thought you were a prophet."

"I am."

"So didn't you see it coming?"

"People always assume that we can see the future when we want to. To make this simple for you all, the future changes so quickly that a prophet can only see what is certain, such as when the rain will fall." Minelli replied.

"Well, that sucks."

"Quick question: did you bring a spare change of clothes?" The man looked at him quizzically, before getting doused in dark red liquid. The waiter had tripped over a chair leg while holding some Shiraz.

"Prophet 1, Moron 0." Minelli smirked to himself.

Lisbon walked past the gossiping Wizards, before sitting herself down on a barstool. She could feel eyes burning holes in her back, but fought the urge to turn around and silence them with a stare.

"Care for a drink dear?" The barmaid asked.

"Sorry, on the job, Kristina." Lisbon told the Ice Wizard.

"Suit yourself, anyone you're looking for in particular?" Kristina asked as she put her palm over a glass and ice cubes appeared out of thin air and began to fill into the cups.

"I would think Giovanni would have told you by now," Lisbon said as she absent-mindedly played with a fresh napkin.

"Ever since last month's break in, he's been posted at that thing 24/7, poor guy." Kristina told her.

"I suppose that's what you get when you go up to the manager of this place and tell her that you have the ability to turn everything within a two squared kilometre invisible." Lisbon shrugged.

"Better he be working here than working with this other guy," Kristina said.

"Other guy?" Lisbon asked. Kristina stared at her like Lisbon was crazy and then leant over the bar table after looking around to make sure that no one was listening in on their conversation.

"You know, that crazy bastard who goes around killing people." Kristina said quietly.

"I thought that was a long time ago," Lisbon said.

"Sounds like you've been downstairs for too long. He struck again around five years ago, killed a family if I remember correctly." Lisbon tried to jog her memory of any missions that involved a serial killer but nothing came to the surface.

"Now I remember; five years ago I had to stay underground. All demons did and no one was told anything. Maybe this is why," Lisbon said curiously.

"Wonder what was so special about this guy that even the big boys in the basement didn't want to get involved with. You've told me about your friends, I'm sure they could take on this whole facility if they wanted to and still be back underground in time for tea." Kristina said, putting her head in her hands.

"I'm sorry, I had no idea. I'll poke around with the high council when I get back. Maybe this has something to do with the latest death I'm working on." Lisbon said.

"Some human guy, right?"

"Yeah, got his mind sucked. Animus from the looks of things," Lisbon said.

"Left alive?"

"Unfortunately. The Feds are completely mind boggled over this one - no pun intended. But I was pretty sure the SBI would be all over this one." Lisbon said.

"You would think that. If they had enough time to get off their high horses and actually start looking out for the rest of us," Kristina said. Lisbon raised her eyebrows in confusion and the barmaid rolled her eyes.

"Have you been living in a coffin, in hell to be precise, for the last century?"

"I'm only allowed up here when they will it," Lisbon said almost sadly.

"And it's my job to keep you informed, isn't it. Don't you have phone reception down there?"

"No."

"The SBI haven't been very successful in catching, what they're calling, the Angel of Death. They're not exactly sure what he is because no one has actually seen him. They say he is Satanic or something. Leaves behind all this crazy drawing when he has made a killing," Kristina said, greatly disliking the topic.

"Could be the reason why none of the demons want to be involved. Symbols are like words, powerful when you know how to use them right," Lisbon said almost scholar-like.

"All a big mystery to me, I'm just a barmaid remember," Kristina said with a small wink before moving off to serve another customer. Out of the corner of her eye she saw someone sit down beside her. She breathed in the thick haze of cologne and tried to shake several images from her mind.

"Hello Teresa," he greeted.

"Mashburn," she replied.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Rigsby, Van Pelt, Cho<strong>_

Van Pelt read through the rules and regulations of the SBI. Being the newbie of the team, she felt that if she messed up she would be a laughing stock and never make her father proud. She once again skimmed her eyes over the cursed line; the one rule she regarded as the strictest and hardest one to obey.

_All SBI Agents must never use their abilities without consent or permission from the bureau and any agents found using magic incorrectly will be dismissed without pay._

Van Pelt sighed and looked at her PC in front of her. Growing up in world of technology meant that her imagination was unlimited. She graduated with high honors in computer technology several years younger than her fellow students and was immediately accepted by the SBI through her father's friendship with the Deputy Director of the bureau. Now she felt like she was bound by the very thing that brought her here. She wasn't even allowed to turn her phone on using her magic, making her feel more human than Wizard. She sighed and put the manual down on her desk. She went through her 'its-only-one-in-the-afternoon-and-there-is-nothing-to-do' routine which started with her compulsively clicking inbox on her email to see if anyone sent her anything. By three, she had finished her latest novel, updated her father on her progress, ate a packet of chips and drew a picture of Cho and Rigsby (Rigsby being asleep and Cho doing Rigsby's paperwork). When she saw Hightower walk into the bullpen (yes walking, not teleporting), Van Pelt almost wanted to hug the woman.

Despite her being the boss, at least her appearance meant that she'd be offered some form of distraction.

"Agents, the feds have finished the case paperwork. Obviously they didn't have much to go on and they say they're backed up at the moment. Our liaison has passed on their findings which is pretty much a psych report and photos of the crime scene. We may as well have a look over it." Hightower said as she dumped a manila file on Van Pelt's desk. Cho walked over and awoke Rigsby who had drooled all over his keyboard. The three of them looked over the unsolved case file and after five minutes of reviewing it, immediately decided that Cho was right, it was the work of an Animus.

"Hey Rigsby, can you go get some cold case files for me?" Van Pelt said after looking at the psych evaluation again.

"Which ones?"

"'Suspicious memory loss' I think," Van Pelt said, trying to keep the sarcasm at bay.

"Oh, yeah. That would be a good idea." Rigsby said and scrambled up from the desk only to be hit by a small dizzy spell. Once he regained his composure, he went off to the archives. He returned with an entire drawer and sat it on his own desk.

"Wow, looks like a lot of cold cases." Van Pelt said amazed.

"These all date back to just over four years ago. We've got an odd twenty plus in here. All with no memory of how they got there, like they were broken out of a trance," Rigsby replied.

"Alright, let's get to work."

For the next hour, they sorted through the files. They had humans in one pile, Wizards in another. They arranged the cases in chronological order and tried to find a pattern in the happenings.

"I think there is only one commonality among them all. The Wizard related ones have nothing to do with it. They're all from a different background with a different way of life. All the humans were businessmen, apparently high up in society and were all middle aged.

"What do you think is going on?" Rigsby asked.

"I think we should tell Hightower, she'll probably know what to make of this." Cho replied.

Only minutes later, the team was in Hightower's office, watching as the weary Wizard tapped her finger as she stared intently on the information they had placed before them. Then she looked up, studied them all individually for a few moments, but still said nothing.

Grace Van Pelt; the tall redheaded rich man's daughter. A sharp girl, talented too. And stunningly beautiful, but that would probably be her greatest flaw. She would forever be prejudiced and written off as the pretty ditz that got where she was through Daddy's influence.

Kimball Cho; an intense, sturdy and stoic Wizard. Top of his class and always excelling. He rose up from the most surprising and dark background, from a childhood spent in the grimy underground world of dark wizardry, mostly out of rebellion. But he quickly turned around to the "good side", to justice, and joined the SBI as one of the top agents.

Wayne Rigsby; another strong agent, with an equally dubious history. His father was known as a particularly violent and dark-tempered Wizard, though never really delving into dark magic. But the hard childhood had turned him into a strong and reliable agent, if sometimes a little clumsy and slow... And sleepy.

Together the three made the top team in the SBI. And it seemed almost absurd to call the odd threesome the best. Every one of them had a talent, but was stuck in a Bureau that could barely catch an imp.

"I can talk to the Deputy Director, but I'm not sure what you three can do about it. It does seem suspicious, but I have to gain consent. Don't get your hopes up. We usually leave human cases to humans, otherwise things get way too complicated. In the meantime, try to dig out any information about the Animus. From what I know, they like to keep to themselves and tend to interact with their own. There is only one Animus that I am in contact with. And his name is Bosco."

* * *

><p><strong>I am back people with a brand new AU just for You! <strong>

**I realized that my skills in AU are lacking majorly so I decided that I needed to improve. **

**Thanks to Zanny who is the best beta in the whole wide world and to SK2 who convinced me that AU's weren't that hard. Haha, I beg to differ -_-**

**Unfortunately (if you actually care) I am going away for Australia next Sunday and will be away for a month. I will be typing so I will probably come back with a sudden burst of updates in August. I might have internet there so just check your emails compulsively like I do! **

**Off to attempt the next chapter. I know it can be a bit hard but Zanny helped me out with the SBI characters. Thank her, not me ^.^ **

**THKer**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

_Unwanted Encounter_

**Lisbon **

After sitting in uncomfortable silence, Lisbon looked to her left to see Walter Mashburn, Tracker extraordinaire sitting beside her, sculling some alcoholic beverage in a shot glass. When he replaced the drink on the table, he gave her a school boy grin that made her stomach turn sour.

"Sources tell me that you're looking for a tracker," he said.

"You should tell your sources to mind their own business," Lisbon replied back harshly.

"Touchy today are we? Should I leave you?" Mashburn said almost mockingly.

"Since you're here and it's probably going to take me a couple of years to get rid of you if I leave, yes, I do need your help but you and you alone. I can't have this going out," Lisbon said almost silently.

"Shall we got to my private suite then?"

"You still have a private suite here, why am I not surprised," Lisbon said to herself.

The private suite was anything but private. Minus the high security door that needed a blood coded key, the room was packed with people Lisbon had never seen before in her life. For good reason as well as it was pretty much a rave party and she could see white substance floating around in the air and she felt the impulse to hold her breath until Mashburn took her to his office. She got wide grins, from males and females alike and suddenly felt overdressed in comparison to the other occupants of the room. She felt a hand on the small of her back the edged her towards a door on the other side of the room. She made her way through the crowd and when she arrived at the mahogany door, gently turned the handle to reveal an empty office room.

"Whatever you say in this room is between you and I. No jokes, no tricks, the door has been soundproofed and not just with that black stuff. Now what is it that you would like me to track? A stray demon, a missing spouse perhaps?" Mashburn said as he took a seat on a wheelie chair on one side of the desk.

"An Animus," Lisbon said blankly. Mashburn's grin disappeared completely off his face and he looked up at her, trying to see any hint of amusement. He found nothing.

"You serious?"

"No Mashburn, I'm just playing with you," she replied stiffly.

"Now why on Earth would a demon-lover want to go after an Animus?"

"Personal matters," Lisbon said.

"Really, has this got anything to do with the mind boggled man they found outside the bar?"

"I'm just asking if you could find the Animus and apparently you don't seem up for the job," Lisbon said, turning on her heel and making her way to the door.

"Hey, I'm just curious. Of course I could find an Animus. Just get me to the crime scene and we're good to go," Mashburn said quickly.

"Good, we're leaving in ten minutes," Lisbon said although there was sincerity in her voice.

"Excellent," Mashburn replied.

R.W

The Tunero left quicker than it arrived as Mashburn called ahead to tell Giovanni to open them before hand. The drive to the crime scene was made in silence although Mashburn stared at her, expecting an explanation but it seemed the woman was focused on driving without breaking any laws. The crime scene was no longer advertised as a crime scene as the road blocks had disappeared and people were walking up and down the street like nothing had ever happened.

"This is it?"

"Sorry, were you expecting blood and gore?"

"You said Animus, I was expecting a little more zing."

"Zing…"

"Okay, let's forget I ever said that. I thought the Animus are scary and would eat your heart for dinner," Mashburn said, shuddering at the thought.

"I've never met one, so I can say anything," Lisbon said. They walked towards the wall where the man had been discovered and Lisbon nodded once before turning on the spot to look in the opposite direction of the wall. She relaxed and let her shoulders slag and let magical energy run through her body. She saw a young child look directly at her and realized she had to push even harder. The child's head looked at her confused before allowing his eyes to look away in disinterest. Mashburn was squatting and had a palm on the pavement. A brilliant orange glow could be seen seeping around his fingers and Mashburn had his eyes shut in concentration.

"Got him," Mashburn said. He stood and saw the world around him completely ignore his presence. He had always knew Lisbon was a lot stronger than she looked, both physically and mentally but looking at her, barely breaking a sweat while making them semi-invisible was enough for Mashburn to believe that the woman standing in front of him, protecting him while he worked could potentially be the most dangerous thing on Earth. He had lived for over eight centuries and Lisbon has been the only Sorceress he had ever met. Either they were secretive little things or there weren't many of them.

"Thanks," she mumbled as she slowly lowered the shields that were protecting them from prying eyes.

"What did you just do?"

"Perception filter, they know we're here but they pay no attention to what we're doing," she replied simply.

"What if I went off and started dancing?"

"Yeah, they'd notice you and the filter would break," Lisbon said although there was a hint of amusement as her imagination ran wild with the idea of Mashburn dancing in a room full of armed terrorists.

"So a no to the dancing." Lisbon just glared at him and he put his hands up in defense. "I know, I'm serious, no dancing."

"Good, so what did you find?"

"You we're absolutely right about him being an Animus, some MA 15+ went down here last night. I couldn't get the exact details but I got a face," he said, his tone suddenly back in business mode.

"Where is he now?"

"From what I was able to gather, he's heading towards Santa Maria, I barely got a hold of him before the images went too blurry," Mashburn said almost apologetically.

"Good, are you coming?"

"As much as I would love to Teresa dear, facing off with an Animus is not the way I was planning to go," Mashburn said, trying to sound as subtle as possible.

"Well, you got me a description?"

"In a matter of fact, I do," he said. He moved towards her and at the same time, she took a step back.

"Can't you just tell me?"

"Now Teresa, I thought you we were doing business and this is part of the package," Mashburn said smirking. "I thought you were going for the highest standard and I'm pretty sure you don't want to go to Santa Maria only to walk around blindly with next to know information of your targets appearance." Lisbon groaned. _Damn, he was right. _She looked around once and then met the Tracker half way. He dipped his head and pressed his lips to hers. She remained still as images flashed through her mind.

_She was no longer in her body, no longer trying to resist Mashburn's advances. She was in a car, a small car to be precise and driving past a "Welcome to Santa Maria" sign. She knew she was looking through the eyes of the target and she wondered if he knew he was being invaded. She stared straight ahead at the road and waited until the man looked up in the rearview mirror. He was handsome, Lisbon would admit and had blonde waves that framed a tired face. He had brilliant blue eyes but they looked sad and aged. _

"And that's all I could get," Mashburn said as he pulled away.

"Yeah, thanks for everything Mashburn," Lisbon said, rolling her shoulders after the tense moment.

"It's Walter to you," Mashburn winked and then after giving her a gracious nod, walked off in the opposite direction. Lisbon knew she should had offered him a ride back but he was gone by the time her conscience won the internal battle over politeness and personal preference. She walked back to her car and got in. She rested her head on the steering wheel before shaking her head a little to try and shake the nervous feeling away. She crammed the keys into the ignition and slammed on the acceleration pedal, powering towards Santa Maria.

**Van Pelt, Cho, Rigsby **

The beach house was nothing extravagant. Rigsby and Van Pelt shared a look; a look of confusion.

"Animus did Hightower say?" Rigsby said.

"I know, I was thinking Vegas meets Japan but it looks like any other estate here," Van Pelt agreed.

"I would think that Jegas or Vapan would alert all members of the public that some rich person lives here. I'm assuming that it's for integration purposes," Cho said.

"Integration?"

"I did a bit of background research on this guy during the ride here," Cho said.

"You got internet?" Rigsby said surprised.

"Roaming, 3G…anyway, Samuel Bosco used to work as a private investigator for the Deputy Director, before he began the SBI. He resigned after a case, it involved another Animus and Bosco had a traumatic experience. He lost three of his men and after realizing that his second-in-command, Rebecca was in league with the Animus he had a bit of a break down. He's been living as a human ever since. He's had to move around because people would have started to notice his non-aging appearance. This was his latest recorded residence," Cho said.

"People keep track of him?"

"It's under laws of the high council but their sources aren't as reliable as those who do it for a hobby," Cho said as they looked up and down the house.

"People stalk deserters as a hobby?" Rigsby said.

"Do you want to know how much I had to pay to get this location?" Cho said blankly and moved towards the house. The younger Agents watched their companion with suspicious glares but shrugged it off, Cho did get them here after all. After a sharp set of knocks to the frosted glass door, they heard a disorientated shuffle as someone attempted to answer. The door swung open and before them stood a slightly overweight man who was balding and looked exhausted.

"Are you Samuel Bosco?"

"SBI Agents, what can I do you for?" He said. Rigsby was about to voice how he knew they were SBI agents but Bosco merely tapped his temple.

"Just because I choose to live like I do doesn't mean I can shun who I truly am. Hightower sent you my way I presume?" He received a pair of baffled expressions. "Hey! Just because I can read minds doesn't mean I have too. I like guessing, it keeps me sane," Bosco said.

"Yeah, Hightower is requesting your assistance, well more, insight on your kind," Cho said.

"Ah yes, she sees me as the master of Animus culture. I find that quite ironic as I barely practice my traditional ways any more but yet, here you all are. Now come inside, I believe my nosy neighbours already have binoculars strapped to their faces and listening devices activated. Don't worry, I had a technopath take care of that." He rambled as he allowed the agents in. Despite its normal exterior appearance, the internals of the beach house was anything but standard. Tribal paintings from South America hung on the corridor leading into the house, a didgeridoo collection sat in a corner next to an umbrella stand, bottles of sand labeled Gobi, Sahara and Arabian were placed on a mantle above a fireplace, a red paper lantern luminated the room with scented candles producing an aroma of vanilla and caramel.

"Quite a place you've got here," Rigsby said.

"I believe I do agent. I get a souvenir from every place I've lived. I've yet to obtain a memory piece from my home here but I've still got another three years here and I think by then I would have found something to put…I think here," he said, pointing at a small space between a shark's tooth and a stone dragon. "Please be seated, I shall not be keeping you waiting any longer." The three of them sat on one side of a wooden coffee table on a couch that looked like it came all the way from India. Bosco sat in a chair that could rival the Pope's on the opposite side. That sat in awkward silence and even Cho wasn't brave enough to speak up. "So younglings, what exactly do you want to know?"

"Everything that could help us find an Animus," Van Pelt said.

"This Animus got a name?"

"Not at the moment. His previous MO was to go around and force himself into other people's minds so he could extract information. The victims appeared unharmed with a slightly case of memory loss. However the latest victim got his mind practically ripped to shreds," Van Pelt continued.

"You see, when we come across someone who is well trained in the art of psychological protection, an Animus who has the desire to extract information must break down all defenses, those defenses being will power. When someone loses their will, they may as well be dead. I assume that the latest victim is nothing more than a human vegetable?"

"You assume correctly, going back to what you said about being trained in the art of psychological protection, where exactly do you get said training?" Cho asked.

"You can have an Animus teach you but I don't know many who are willing to tell humans their trade secrets, hell, none of us are supposed to be talking to humans at all. Training yourself can take centuries. That's why only ancient Wizards have the ability to completely reject an Animus's advances into their minds. Thirdly and I believe this is your most likely option, a mind binder."

"A what?" Van Pelt asked.

"Someone, more powerful than any Animus bound the humans mind. However, I believe the binder didn't anticipate such a strong Animus to perform the extraction, that's why your human has fried brains," Bosco said.

"Alright, mind binder plus human mind protections minus strong Animus equals fried brains. Yep, I think I've got it," Rigsby said as he dotted his sentences. He looked up from his notepad with bemused faces and Cho just shook his head.

"Last question, how do we find him? I mean, don't you Animus's have a secret underground network. Do you know any Animus's who could perform an extraction? We need to find him/her pronto before he messes with another human and reveal our world," Van Pelt said.

"Animus's, despite their powerful abilities, are one of the smaller minorities as they almost defenseless against physical attack. In such a case, if all attackers were mind bound, the Animus's would not be able to read mines, therefore, being as useless as a human child. The small majority of my people are older than a thousand. I may not be able to give you an specific name but I believe I do have two candidates of your target. One be *female character insert here* but she's too busy going off and conning people, I wouldn't think she would be going after people as you are mentally projecting to me. The second, a man, Jane I believe. I haven't physically met him before but I've heard his thoughts, or other people's thoughts concerning him. Lost his family, went into severe depression but now I wouldn't know what has become of him. No guarantee's but I believe he is your best bet," Bosco said.

"Can you find him?"

"I can try agent Cho, if he is as strong as stories go, he might block me when he feels my mind trying to enter his," Bosco said. He rested his forehead in his hands and closed his eyes in deep concentration.

_**Brother Jane**_

_Samuel Bosco, those SBI Agents after me?_

_**Indeed**_

_No need to keep me talking, I have no fear of agents of the Bureau. You know my location, tell them, they will not be able to stop me_

_**Brother Jane!**_

Bosco shook his head and came back into the real world. The agents were looking at him eagerly. He gave them a small smile before telling them.

"Santa Maria, he's at a motel, Fire and Ice if I'm correct. You better shake a tail, Santa Maria is quite a drive," Bosco said cheerfully.

"Thank you! Thank you for everything Mr. Bosco," Van Pelt beamed.

"Glad I could be of assistance. One last thing, be careful," Bosco said as Rigsby and Cho were half way out the door.

"Yeah, we'll be careful, mind fryer and all," Rigsby said.

"No, while I was inside Jane's mind, I sensed something else," Bosco said.

"What was it?"

"Someone else, someone is also going after him, someone who figured out it was him before you," Bosco said. The three of them stopped and exchanged a look.

"Should we get back to Hightower?" Rigsby said.

"I think a phone call will suffice," Van Pelt said and pulled out her phone.

**Jane**

He groaned as he sipped his third cup of tea. He was exhausted but fought against the desire to collapse on the rock hard motel bed behind him. He had been mind probed twice, once by a tracker and then by a fellow Animus. He didn't care for those who wanted him, he had one goal and that was revenge. To him, the tracker's hirer and the agents are merely a bump on the road. He stirred the lukewarm tea and looked at the notes on the desk. His reflection in the mirror in front of him looked like road kill and tried to concentrate on the penned words in front of him.

Jane stood in front of Santa Maria General Hospital that same evening. He watched the doctors and patients enter and leave the main doors. He closed his eyes and opened his mind to allow others thoughts become his.

_God, still got three hours 'till the end of my shift. I think I'm going to murder the Chief of Medicine_

_I hope Mrs. Robinson gets her antibiotics in time, that bite didn't look too good. _

_He was so young! How could of this happened. Why did no one tell me that he was playing by the road. I want my baby boy back. _

_I need to tell Lucy that I cannot come in tomorrow. I'll have Dr. Mandel cover me, he owes me one anyway. _

Jane looked up and saw a middle aged doctor walk out of the hospital doors. He looked professional and despite looking tired after a 48 hour shift, he still looked presentable and almost cheerful. Jane watched him walk towards his vehicle but made no move to approach him. Jane was no fool, he would not attack in plain sight, no, he was far clever than that. He was back in his own car in a matter of minutes to follow the doctor out of the hospital parking lot and onto the busy eight o'clock road. He wondered if Dr. Lucan had any idea what his actions had caused. He looked at the car that was two vehicles away and sent a telepath Dr. Lucan's way.

_Good Evening Dr. Lucan, driving anywhere specific this lovely night?_

_**Who the hell are you and what do you want?**_

_I always find it amusing how you always ask who I am but never how I am speaking to you despite no one else being inside your car. That is, if you were an ignorant human that believed in science_

_**I know what you are, they warned me about the rest of you. I did nothing wrong, I just wanted what I wanted and I got what I got. No harm done, even if I had to go to this creeper to get it. **_

_You have no idea how wrong you are. Harm was done, harm well beyond repair. You will tell me who helped you and you will be able to go home to your pet budgerigar_

_**Do you know how old I am?**_

_Over three hundred years is my estimation. Your mind is quite complex._

_**So you do exist. He warned us that people like you might be able to see through my youthful exterior. **_

_I don't care for you, just the man behind this. _

_**Now you see, if I was to turn him in, I would no longer have my supply of…product **_

_Keep it up and you'll have no use for your 'product' once I'm through with you_

_**Malicious aren't you?**_

_Just unforgiving. _

_**You need a hobby**_

_Isn't this one? _

Jane let a couple of other cars pull in front of him but he would have no trouble losing his potential informant. Lucan's mind was so full of fear that Jane could hardly stand being inside his brain. It was almost suffocating with raw emotion. Lucan's house was two stories high and looked like a resident that could house a small African tribe. It held Lucan, his bird and his occasional lady friend. Jane parked his car two streets down and made the rest of his journey by foot. He heard the happy chirps of the bird and the satisfied chuckles of a full grown man. He knocked on the front door and waited patiently for Lucan's appearance. He felt the adrenalin starting to pump through his system and acted almost nervously as he heard footsteps come in contact with what sounded like wooden floors. The door swung open and Jane watched as the pleased grin disappeared off Lucan's face.

"I knew you would come for me. I couldn't ignore the fact that others like me were getting killed. I know what you want and I know that despite what I'm going to tell you, I'm never walking out this house alive," Lucan said.

"Your fate depends on what you tell me," Jane said with a small smile. He practically forced himself into the house and eventually arrived in the lounge room where the Budgie was chirping.

"I'm not sure what others have told you but I can tell you this. Our creator is not like you and I. You may be immortal and I, a mere shadow of your existence but what _he _is might be far worse that you anticipated. I warn you, your journey of revenge is going to end in suffering," Lucan said.

"Yes, well I can't help my desire to destroy him now can I?"

"Apparently not. I have never seen him face to face but if you can capture one of his followers, you might find out his exact location. He has a habit of moving around every few months. A follower of his is located in San Francisco, his name is Gnash, a phaser from my memory."

"I see, well you have been the first of many that have cracked. I might just spare you tonight. You have been helpful."

"Might?"

"I would have, had you not alerted your fellow life stealers of my presence," Jane said.

"Life Stealer? If I have lived this long, surely I am an immortal?" Lucan said, completely unaware of Jane's bitter expression.

"Immortals live forever, neither you or I are immortal if we can still die. I just go by the title: Animus, the thief of minds," Jane said as he gripped Lucan's head.

"Make it quick," Lucan said almost conversationally. Jane was just about to respect his wishes when he felt his body impacting ceiling and found himself looking down on the stunned Lucan.

"Oh crap," Lucan said and ran out of the room. Jane tried to see who was standing in the doorway.

"Who's there?" He called out. He first saw a pair of black booths, then a trench coat and finally a woman with raven black hair and emerald green eyes looking at him. She gave the room a quick glance before resuming her staring at the confused Animus. He looked at her and she seemed different from other 'immortals' that he has met. For one, she had the guts to go after him, an Animus on the warpath. He closed his eyes, ready to enter her mind.

_Your mind tricks won't work on me_

_**You sound so sure, you're the one that hired the tracker I presume**_

_I don't understand, if you knew I was coming, why be so…reckless about it?_

_**I have more important things to worry about than a silly girl trying to be a superhero. **_

"Okay, enough with the telepathy. I just want to talk to you," Lisbon said.

"Yeah, well hanging upside down is going to make it quite a challenge," Jane said, feeling the blood rush to his brain.

"It's just a precaution, for my safety, not yours. I'm from the Underworld and I need you to tell me who this Angel of Death person is," Lisbon said, cutting straight to the chase.

"Underworld? I wouldn't exactly pin you for a demon, what demon would come after the Angel of Death, very least, an Animus like me?"

"I'm not a demon. The Angel of Death was on this Earth a couple of years ago. I need to know why and what for," Lisbon said.

"I see, hold on, you don't know what happened here several years ago?"

"No, I was…downstairs," Lisbon said.

"Interesting. Well how about putting me down and I can go get some biscuits, maybe some cheese crackers," Jane said.

"Like that's going to happen," Lisbon said. Jane sighed and then closed his eyes. He never really liked doing what he was about to do on others. Stealing information was one thing, getting into someone else's mind was another. Lisbon felt like her head was splitting in two and fell to the ground in pain.

"I'm sorry," Jane said as he fell from the ceiling and landed gracefully on two feet.

"I don't think so," Lisbon said as she through her hand out and mentally grabbed the sofa. Jane, who was facing the other way, was struck by several kilos of fabric that knocked him off his feet. She light-headedly stood and tried to throw something else at the man who was currently under a broken couch. A lamp landed next to his head and he gingerly tried to get off the ground.

"Big mistake," he said and pushed off the ground, the sofa falling backwards. Lisbon took a step backwards and expected the Animus to turn and fight her. She was confused when she watched him push past her. "I have bigger things to deal with," he said. She shook her head and turned around to follow him.

"You don't understand, my friends are scared of this Angel of Death. A source has told me that he's killed people. What is he that makes everyone so afraid?" Lisbon said.

"Shouldn't everyone be afraid of death?"

"Then why are you going after him?"

"What makes you think I'm going after him?"

"How about all the people you've gone after, they can't just be random targets unless you're trying to follow a trail. A trail that leads them to your Angel," Lisbon said.

"Trails, Angels, this means nothing. You don't know anything, whatever you are," Jane said.

"I'm a sorceress, I was raised by demons, they sent me out to find you and find out what the hell you were doing because humans are getting suspicious. If you blow our cover, everything will be destroyed," Lisbon said.

"So this is because you want to keep humans and our world separate. I understand that so why are you still talking to me?" Jane said, trying to increase walking speed towards his car.

"You're the one that's screwing it up. I can't let you do that," Lisbon said.

"Okay Demonic Sorceress, what I'm doing is none of your concern but if it's to get you off my tail, I will try to be more careful with human contacts," Jane said.

"Why are you going after them anyway?"

"I thought you said I was going after a trail."

"You're infuriating, you know that?"

"Yes, yes I do." He heard her footsteps halt and knew that she wasn't going to follow him any further.

"I have to stop you. Know that I will find you again and maybe I won't let you get away," Lisbon said. Jane smirked slightly and turned around to face her. In the streetlights, she was quite beautiful and he could see why so many people would call her demon. She looked like she belonged in the darkness. Her hair, her eyes, the way she stood in the almost pitch black without a slightest care for the night time dangers. He let his gaze wonder over her body and opened his mind slightly. Before he reached hers, he shut it.

"Run," he said sharply.

"What?"

"For god's sake," he ran up to her and grabbed her wrist and dragged her down the street. He passed his car and kept running.

"What's going on? One minute you're trying to implode my skull and now we're running away like we're convicts," Lisbon said.

"SBI, there was three agents, they've been trying to get to me as well. Samuel Bosco, another Animus contacted me and found out where I was. Must've been following me like you had," Jane said.

"If you tell me what you're doing, I'll get you out of here," Lisbon said.

"I don't need your help-" he yelped as a bullet brushed his ear and dared a quick glance behind him. He saw three people chasing after them. All armed with guns.

"Why on earth do they have guns? Aren't they like us?"

"Explaining later, I'll take you up on that Escape Package of yours," Jane said.

"Hold on tight." She said and grabbed his other arm. She mumbled something under her breath and Jane felt like his body was getting ripped apart.

**Van Pelt, Cho, Rigsby**

The Animus was with another woman. They wondered if she was in on it as well but after they heard crashing from inside the house, they decided that she was more foe than friend. They watched them leave the house together and slowly followed them. It was when Van Pelt stood in the spotlight of the streetlight did they realize their cover was blown. The Animus was looking directly at her and then the pair started to run. Cho had cocked his gun and aimed. He missed the Animus and merely grazed his ear. He watched the woman grab him and then disappear in a cloud of green fire.

"What the hell was that?" Van Pelt said.

"Cho's bad aiming?" Rigsby replied stunned.

"Sorceress," Cho answered.

* * *

><p><strong>If you are planning on hunting me down because it took me a while to update, feel free. I feel so bad right now. Blame slow Australian Internet! That and I was lazy. I will try to get the next chapter up quicker. I've got another week until I get back to HK and then I'm going to the Anicon (AnimeGames Convention).**

**Thanks to Super Zanny who was brilliant enough to tell me that she was back and then got back to me in record time. By the time it was back on my side beta'd I was almost annoyed with it because it was so long. **

**I realize I never do disclaimers...I assume you are all intelligent enough to know that I don't own the Mentalist. I do own characters that aren't originally from the series though. Hope it's easy enough to follow, AU's have proven not to be for the fainthearted. **

**THKer**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_**Jane/Lisbon**_

Jane opened his eyes and was immediately thankful that he wasn't looking at a roof of a SBI jail cell. The room was a lot more… welcoming and didn't smell of rotting felons. Then the memory of the SBI agents chasing him and the Sorceress woman first beating him up and then rescuing him returned, and he sat up rather violently. He groaned when the soreness of his muscles shot through his body; his back, arms and legs were on fire.

Sitting up, he leant against the headboard of the (surprisingly soft) bed he was on and gave the room an once-over. The room was darker than he would've imagined it; the furniture had a gothic twist and nearly everything was black. Then it hit him. The only place where _this_ Sorceress would go, the place she would know as "safe", was a place that very few wizards would dare to venture.

"About time you came to. You've been down for almost two days. I'm sorry, some people just aren't used to teleportation. Trust me, it took me years to get used to the gut-wrenching feeling of getting your insides shuffled around." He looked up and saw Lisbon standing in the doorway with a smug smile.

"We're in the Underworld aren't we?" Jane asked immediately.

"Where else was I supposed to bring you? The SBI have jurisdiction in any country on earth. However, they have no control of other dimensions," Lisbon said pointedly but it looked like Jane wasn't listening properly. Jane sucked in a deep breath and moved around, testing his muscles more delicately this time.

"I can get you something for that," Lisbon said.

"What, you've got some magical demon potion?" Jane said as he felt a small burn rip through his back to his legs.

"I meant Panadol," Lisbon said with a small sigh. He was about to make another snarky comment, but he saw her raised eyebrows and twitching fingers and decided against it.

"Yeah, that would be great thanks," he replied. Lisbon nodded and tapped the floor twice with her boot. Jane stared at her with a 'What the hell' look clearly plastered across his face. Said look grew in giant proportions as he watched two small pond-like portals appear in front of Lisbon; one blood red and one deep blue. Jane craned his neck in curiosity, but quickly recoiled when two men jumped up and out of the portals, nearly giving him a heart attack.

Jane was prepared for horned devils with pitch forks and fire glazed eyes. Instead, he got two Calvin Klein underwear models with huge grins on their faces.

"Patrick Jane, this is Natas and Luce," Lisbon said. Natas being the dirty blonde hair one that appeared from the red portal and Luce being the dark-haired bad boy with bright blue highlights that popped up from the blue portal.

"Demons?"

"You may know us better as our birth names, Satan and Lucifer," Natas said.

"Holy mother of God," Jane said. The sorceress and two demons chuckled lightly and Natas pulled a packet of tablets out of his pocket. Jane thanked him and took two of them dry.

"So, you've taken a ride on the Lisbonator," Natas said, his teasing smile still there.

"Guys…" Lisbon said. Jane could hear the slight annoyance in her voice.

"Don't worry, we've all been down that path. Luce pretty much threw up and passed out," Natas said.

"Shut up man," Luce snapped, a small tinge of pink appeared on his cheeks.

"You're such a girl!"

"What 'bout you? You freaked out so much you ran into a wall!"

"I'm the girl? I ain't the one called Lucy!"

"I'm not the one called Natalie!"

"Both of you, put a sock in it or I'll blast you both into a place that will make you wish you flung yourself off a cliff," Lisbon snarled.

"We have to live with this," Natas said to Jane, jerking a thumb in Lisbon's direction.

"Pity us," Luce said, and after they gave him a small wave, jumped back down into their portals and disappeared.

Jane made to move out from under the bed covers, but winced slightly at the weight being shifted onto his thighs.

"I'm really sorry. It was either this or hurting those SBI agents. I don't know about you, but I don't really want to be on their wanted lists." Lisbon said as she moved towards him in a vain attempt to stop him from moving around. Jane pushed himself off the bed and did a small, restricted stretch.

"You should at least give it one night," Lisbon said.

"No thanks, I can deal with it fine. He stumbled slightly towards the door and walked out into the hallway. To say it was massive would be an understatement. He was sure he was in some multimillion dollar mansion and when he breathed in he could smell a strong combined aroma of steak, chicken, lamb and duck. Then he felt a small twinge in his lower abdomen. He walked towards the first door he saw and gave the handle a jiggle, but it didn't open. He did the same thing with the next door and the next door. He felt like kicking the fifth door open with his exhausted body, but even more so, he wanted to kick himself for getting himself into this mess in the first place!

"You could've just asked," Lisbon said from behind him. Apparently she had leant against the wall and watched him try and open locked doors. "They're all unoccupied guest rooms. The bathroom's on the other side of the corridor." Jane grumbled at his own stupidity and stumbled towards the door Lisbon was pointing at.

"You're welcome," she said to the slammed door.

Lisbon was still standing outside the door when Jane emerged from the bathroom. He had been surprised to find a three piece suit folded neatly on a bench so Jane took the opportunity to take a hot shower to ease the aches in his body. Combined with the Panadol and the hot water, Jane was beginning to feel a lot better.

"The chef informed me that lunch will be served, but I have a feeling you already know that," Lisbon said. She was right, as Jane had mentally searched every being possible within range while he was in the shower.

"An assortment of meats if I recall correctly," Jane said.

"I will just have to believe you then. He didn't tell me what it was. I suppose I enjoy being surprised," Lisbon shrugged. They made their way down the corridor and towards a spiral staircase.

"So how big is this place?"

"It's centuries old, but has been modified over the years. Four stories, two underground levels, six bathrooms, one large kitchen, three sitting areas, two lounge rooms, one entertainment arena and a garage. Too many bedrooms to recall," Lisbon said in one breath.

"Well, you've been living the high life," Jane said.

"I've had a better existence than some but being the only Sorceress in a land full of demons can be quite tiring. Nonetheless, they have been very welcoming and as I grew older and more experienced they allowed me to join their ranks as a professional investigator. I'm one of the few who can travel between these two worlds," Lisbon said.

"Worlds?"

"You obviously weren't listening before. Hell isn't simply below ground, it is another dimension. We have our own ways of living, our own cultures, our own gods," Lisbon explained. Jane looked at her, trying to hide the small surprised feeling he felt when he was informed he was no longer on his Earth. He followed her as they casually walked through the large mansion, passing several closed doors and intricate passage ways. Against his better judgment, he opened his mind and listened to the thoughts of all the demons that lived in the building.

_Silly Resa brought some Earthlander… Hope she doesn't get into too much trouble._

_Foolish youngster. She's going to get us all killed. This stranger is probably a spy…_

_I wonder what type of Earthlan__d__ Wizard he is? I just wish mother would let me join the Investigators… Earth sounds so cool!_

"Jane… for the sake of both of us, please stop with the mind-thing. People here can be a lot less understanding. In other words, they won't hesitate to end your being if they find out you're poking around in their business," Lisbon said.

"How do you know I was listening?"

"You furrow your eyebrows and sort of blankly stare ahead…without blinking," Lisbon replied.

"Ah, bit of a giveaway?"

"Obviously." Lisbon decided to walk a little faster so Jane wouldn't pester her with more questions. For a broken man, he seemed quite cheery and almost child-like. With his never-ending storm of obnoxious comments and kitten-like curiosity, Lisbon was starting to wonder if saving him was such a good idea. She made sure that Jane wasn't trying to break down her mental shields before stopping in front of a rather large set of double doors.

"So, this is where the party is?"

"I saved your life, so you're playing by my rules. As long as you are here, you go nowhere without me. You're my responsibility and it's my hide they skin if you go and screw something up. Don't go off and play wizard, don't tell the youngsters too much about Earthland, because then I'm gonna have to deal with a storm of angry demon-parents. And last but certainly not least, don't read people's minds. If they ask, tell them truthfully, but just tell them. No demonstrations. Got it?"

"Crystal clear, now, through these doors you say?" Before Lisbon could say anything, the Animus had pushed both the doors inward and walked into the dining area like he had done it every day since his birth. He politely waved at the stunned demons who were sitting at the dining table and flashed his picture perfect grin.

"Ah, Mr Jane, we have been awaiting your arrival," A man said from the head of the table. "I am Sedah. I humbly welcome you to the land of the Underworld. I've been informed that your journey was quite turbulent, but it seems you have arrived in one piece," He said, giving him a small smile.

"The miracles of human science," Jane said as he took the seat closest to his new playmate.

"Well Mr Jane, you must be hungry. Alphonse, bring him some food please," The demon called to the previously stoic servant, who sprung into action the moment his name was said.

"Right away, sir," He said and dashed quickly towards the kitchen. He almost immediately returned with two other demons pushing a rather large food cart.

"Oh really, you didn't need to do all this," Jane said although his tone of voice wasn't very convincing.

"Please, eat to your heart's content," Sedah said and began loading his once empty plate with a variety of meats and side dishes. "Oh, and Lisbon dear, you are free to join us."

"Oh that's alright sir, I have other matters to attend to," Lisbon said. She politely nodded at the head demon and then looked at the Animus with a death glare.

_Any funny business while I'm gone, and I'll send you to the SBI in a crate topped with a bow. _

Jane gave a cheerful wave at the murderous woman who left the room silently, leaving several of the diners to stare after her with amused looks. After a short period of time spent mutely eating food, Jane piped up,

"So, I believe introductions are in order."

Lisbon groaned as she made her way to the conference room where Luce, Natas and the other members of the DI (Demon Investigators) were assembling. Ever since Lisbon returned to the Underworld with news of the events happening on Earthland, several of the DI's immediately wanted to carry out a full blown investigation. No one looked up when she entered the room as they were all too absorbed in a file that had been duplicated and distributed among the members. Luce absent-mindedly stood up from a wheelie chair and handed her a copy of the file. She mumbled a soft 'thank you' and began to read the printed text.

_Angel of Death_

_The AOD is an unknown serial killer currently active on Earthland and was first sighted over a millennium ago when a young earth mage was found murdered in Budapest. The AOD's origins are unknown, but it is believed that the AOD possesses forms of mind abilities as well as physical manipulation. His death toll has been estimated to be just short of 50 although there are dozens that have been unconfirmed._

_The style of the AOD has been predicted to be known as 'silent'. Victims are observed and during times of weakness and vulnerability, are executed. Victims have no connection between them, there is no distinction between race, age, religion, job, personal life, area or gender. Most recent victim(s): Angela and Charlotte Jane._

_The AOD has also been hypothesized that it is a cult or group of organized criminals although there has not been any sufficient evidence to support this theory._

Lisbon scanned through the rest of it but it pretty much told her repeatedly that no one had any idea who the hell the Angel of Death was. When she came upon Angela and Charlotte Jane, she felt her heart tug slightly. She placed the file on the table and looked at her co-workers who all had the sheepish look she had. She had always known that the Underworld believed that keeping their world and Earthland separate was for the best and at first she found this a ridiculous rule, but now she understood. It was a miracle that humans and wizards could co-exist on the same land, but now the wizards are messing with the balance and if the barrier crumbled, everyone would be endangered.

"So, what are we going to do about this, Tess?" A demon asked.

"We can't just let the Wizards deal with this. They'll get us all killed!" Another said.

"We don't even know who this Angel of Death person is. We don't stand a chance and with his record, we could be next," Natas added.

"Thanks for the positivity, guys. Let's just be thankful he hasn't figured out a way to get to the Underworld. As far as the records go, a demon has never been attacked by this so called 'Angel of Death'. As long as we stay here, we're safe," Luce said with a sigh.

"How can you know that?" Lisbon said quietly.

"What do you mean?" Luce replied.

"How do you know that this Angel of Death can't come here?" Lisbon said louder. There was a collective silence with eyes uneasily looking around the room. She knew it was foolish to bring it up, but she had no choice. If they were too overconfident to believe that they were safe merely because they were in another world then it would mean that they didn't stand a chance.

"Well Lisbon, how do you propose we deal with the situation?" A domineering voice said from the walls. A portal appeared and a talk, sleek woman walked through the pitch black opening.

"So glad you could join us Judacia," Natas said. Judacia, the head of the Underworld Investigators and the highest authority next to Sedah was by far, one of the most feared residents of the Underworld.

"Yes, Yes…moving on Lisbon," she said, dismissing her lateness and everyone was wise to let it slide.

"Patrick Jane has been tracking the Angel and he's probably our best chance at nailing this guy," Lisbon said.

"We don't want to find him, we just want to keep him away," One of the demons spoke up and a few others murmured in agreement.

"Why not? The wizards barely stand a chance and humans have none at all," Lisbon said as her voice rose.

"Now listen here, sorceress, the thing is I don't really care for your fellow wizards. They got themselves into this mess; this is their problem and they've got to deal with it," Judacia said. Lisbon's eyes flickered dangerously and Luce, Natas and even the majority of the other members clenched their fists.

"Fine," Lisbon said finally.

"What is that supposed to mean?" All eyes were darting between the two women, they could feel Judacia's dark aura radiate from her and could see Lisbon's hands glow an emerald green.

"Ladies, no need to fight, why don't we calm down a bit?" Luce said.

"Silence," Judacia snapped and everyone in the room took a large step backwards. The demons knew that one wrong move will send the two females into a vicious battle. One was too proud to stand down and the other was angry with the insults that she had to deal with ever since she arrived in the Underworld.

"Are we really going to do this here?" Lisbon snarled an inhuman snarl. Judacia smirked darkly and lunged at the younger woman.

"So you see, being an Animus is not just about reading minds. It's about being able to understand everyone around you," Jane said to the crowd. Nobles, servants and young demons alike had gathered in the dining area to listen to the foreigner explain the latest info about Earthland. Nearly all of them hadn't set foot on Jane's homeland and were interested to hear about this world, lifetimes away.

"So, I guess it's easier for you. I mean, if someone was lying to you, you could always find out what they were hiding from you," A young female servant said.

"Now that's where it gets complicated. If the thought is at the forefront of someone's mind, then I can get the information, no questions asked. However, if the thought or information is buried within a person's consciousness or if it is an almost forgotten memory, then you have to be careful. You could permanently damage their state of mind and could lead to loss of self, memory, bodily function etc." A murmur spread through the crowd, some intrigued, others cautious of the Animus.

"That sounds really cool, Mister Jane!" A young boy said excitedly.

"Why thank you, young man," Jane smiled. He was then pelted with several questions regarding his existence and he was more than happy to answer them. As long as they didn't bring up and painful memories that is. He was glad that he had an enthusiastic crowd. The Underworld had so far shown him that Lisbon had lived quite a good life here. There was no need to hide his abilities. No, it seemed that his abilities weren't even needed here. The people here seemed so happy and content with life that he was a little jealous of Lisbon. He tried to shake the green eyed sorceress from his mind, but she just kept popping back. She was the first one for a long time to show him true kindness; bringing him here despite the trouble she would go through in addition to the racism that he could imagine she has to endure.

"So how long you've been living?" An older lady said sweetly. Her blood red eyes filled with an undying bright spark. Her face was significantly more aged that the other youths in the room as hers had worry lines. Jane looked genuinely surprised at this. "No need to stare dear, I'm a healer born many centuries ago and this appearance just helps remind others of my experience."

"Oh, well I was born several centuries ago as well. I never knew my mother and my father is off traveling the world…" Jane nearly growled. He didn't exactly have the healthiest relationship with his paternal figure, but Jane didn't want to relay his daddy-problems to the lovely woman before him.

"Well, if you ever want to drop by, I work in a store ten minutes' walk from here. Just ask around and I'm sure somebody will direct you," She nodded and then disappeared into the crowd.

_Oh, and I forget to add, my name is Brenda…Brenda Shettrick. Hope I will see you again soon._

Jane smiled slightly. He felt he was going to like this woman and he didn't even feel like poking into her mind. There was a small crackling sound and he saw his favourite sorceress teleport in the dining room. He was about to call her over when he saw a portal appear and a tall demon emerge from it. He had a feeling this woman was Lisbon's boss by the way she was looking at the sorceress. He walked towards them and the crowd divided to allow him to get to the women who were engaged in a staring contest.

"Well, isn't this cheerful? I believe you haven't introduced us," Jane said.

"Shut up Jane," She snapped, but that didn't wash the schoolboy grin of his face.

"This must be your new toy, Lisbon." The woman said maliciously.

"Jane, Patrick Jane. Who may you be?" Jane said and walked with his arm outstretched towards the demon woman to shake her hand.

Judacia, Head of the Underworld Investigation team and don't touch me." She said. Jane dropped her hand unceremoniously, but didn't offer any apology.

"Judy, can you please excuse us," Sedah said finally. He had watched the exchange and decided to intervene before there was any bloodshed. He dismissed everyone from the room, leaving only Lisbon and Jane.

"Sir, I'm sorry, I can explain everything," Lisbon said.

"No need to explain. Nothing was destroyed… this time. And it was smart of you to come here. Judacia isn't foolish enough to fight in front of everyone and the very least, me." Sedah said.

"May I ask why you have her in charge? It's obvious that you have a dislike for her," Jane said.

"She may be a grumpy demoness, but she's good at what she does," Sedah said. Jane looked at him uncertainly and decided to open his mind.

_Out of my mind Animus_

"How…?" The words stumbled out before Jane could stop them.

Sedah indicated towards the sorceress (who had tapped her temple when she saw Jane's mind reading signs) and gave her a small smile of thanks.

"Anyway, I believe you were previously discussing the Angel of Death. Was a decision made?"

"No sir, it just led to the disagreement between Judacia and myself," Lisbon replied.

"I see. Well Lisbon, why don't you give Mr Jane a tour of the Underworld. Keep to the city though. The outskirts can still be a little, ahem, precarious," Sedah said. Lisbon nodded almost solemnly and Jane had this urge to ask about the 'outskirts', but decided it was a question to be brought up at a later time. Sedah summoned his portal and vanished through the floor, leaving Jane with the sorceress who had finally cooled down from her encounter with her boss.

"So my dear, where first?"

_**Van Pelt, Cho and Rigsby**_

_(Immediately after Lisbon and Jane's Departure)_

The trio searched the house they followed Jane to, but found nothing to hint where they had gone. They all worked silently, not wanting to admit to the degree of the mess they had gotten themselves into. They knew Hightower would want a discreet yet immediate update, but so far everything was looking pretty bleak. They had an Animus, a Sorceress and a serial killer running loose and the SBI had no idea where any of them were. It seemed that their luck had run out.

"That woman can really cause some damage," Rigsby said after about half an hour of stunned silence. They all looked at the upturned lounge and the dents on the floor.

"What confuses me the most is why the Sorceress helped Jane, even after she was apparently trying to destroy him," Van Pelt said.

"We need to get back to HQ. Hopefully there'll be some information in the system about her. I've never heard of her; what has it been – years, since there's been any confirmed Sorcery activity?" Cho said.

"I can see why. We've seen what she can do and that was to avoid fighting us, I can't imagine what I would do if I had to face her," Van Pelt said.

"We wouldn't last a second," Rigsby agreed.

The team left the house untouched and returned to their car that was parked several blocks away. They drove back to the HQ filled with fear; the feeling of being watched present every second of the drive. They almost sighed in relief when the SBI building came into view. They quickly ducked into Hightower's office and informed her of the situation.

When the word Sorceress was brought up, Hightower sat up straighter and her face morphed into deep concern. As expected, she wasn't thrilled at the news but was clearly proud that she had three loyal Agents that were willing to put their lives on the line to get this information to her.

"What do you suggest we do next?" Cho asked.

"In all honestly... nothing." Her reply stunned the three agents before her. "Unless they resurface, there is no point trying to find them. It was amazing that you were able to get so close to the Animus without him realizing you were nearby. And I am even more surprised that the Sorceress fled instead of facing you. For now, I want you to go back to work as normal and don't raise any suspicion. The news of an Animus and a Sorceress working together is unheard of and truthfully, a disaster if they are in any way in league with the serial killer. None of us can even fathom what that would mean." Hightower said sadly.

"So we just have to wait? Wait until something bad happens?" Van Pelt said.

"Yes. There is nothing we can do," Hightower said. "I can't talk to the head of the CBI because the only proof we have of this encounter is your word. I may believe you, but the democrats won't. Not unless they have stone-hard proof. Now please return to your desks. Oh, and you have permission to retrieve any information on Sorcery activity," Hightower finished.

"Thank you, Ma'am." They chorused and left the office.

If they had turned around, they would have seen a single tear of fear run down their boss's face.

"Somebody save us," she said and furiously wiped the moisture away.

* * *

><p><strong>Wow, it's been almost a lifetime ago since I've updated it. As some of you might know, laptop was down again but thankfully, I've taken the measures to now use a separate hard drive so I could work on another computer if this on fails again. Thanks to Zanny for being so patient with me :D<strong>

**If some of you are confused, feel free to PM me for questions**

**Extra Note**

**If any of you are on Twitter, you can go to my profile and *follow* or whatever term they use. I find that some 'ers use it to tell people when they're updating. So I'll tweet or whatever when I'm:  
><strong>

***Working On It  
>*Sent it to Beta<br>*Posted new chapter (if you don't receive alerts)  
><strong>

**This is mainly telling you that I'm actually working on it. Also going to use if for when I'm working on something new. Thanks guys! **


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**Jane/Lisbon**

They left the city life behind as the supernatural duo trudged through the soggy back garden of an extremely ancient building. The sun was still high in the sky, but both the Animus and the Sorceress seemed completely unbothered by the mid-spring heat. This was despite the fact that Jane was in one of his three-piece suits and Lisbon was in her sleek body suit and trench coat - a look Jane had commented on several times, saying that she should stop dressing like a death dealer.

It had been over a fortnight since Lisbon and Jane had left the Underworld and they were on the way to obtain some information from an informant that was willing to speak to a demon sorceress and an Animus. Jane offered a hand to his new companion as one of her combat boots got stuck in the damp mud and Lisbon gave him a small smile as she accepted it.

During his time in the Underworld, Jane had gotten an insight in Lisbon's life as an outsider living in the Underworld. While many had been civil to Jane, some even being what one might consider as "friendly", there were a few members of the demonic community that completely detested Jane's presence. It was Lisbon who had to threaten them to stand down when the comments went over the line. And though Jane had quickly proved that he was nothing short of a complete nuisance to anyone he came in contact with, Lisbon learnt to appreciate his abilities. Not once did she abandon him when the demons' glares became a bit too threatening...

While Jane did tone down his mind searching, he didn't completely cease his silent eavesdropping. Suddenly, secrets that would have stayed buried forever came undone and several truths came to light. Jane was able to solve mysteries that kept the Underworld Protection Services puzzled for centuries and catch felons that have been walking the streets untouched. Jane started to become an infamous hero among his fans, but both Lisbon and Sedah knew that Jane didn't belong in the Underworld. When the CBI lost their trail, Jane would have to return to Earth.

What Sedah did not know was that Lisbon was planning on going with him. She was determined to see to the Angel of Death's demise and she realized that her best chance wasn't to keep aimlessly flitting around like she was doing, but to join Jane in his crusade for vengeance...

As they sauntered through the muddy garden, the pair looked up at their surroundings. The house looked like it could barely stand on its own. It looked like it could be reduced to rubble in a gust of wind and that was exactly how Brett Stiles, the Empath, wanted it. To the world he worked as a charity worker, helping his local church and trying to aid people in need.

To the world filled with Demons, Wizards and things that go bump in the night, he was a man who could get you what you needed for a reasonable price and fairly quickly. The reason why he lived in a rickety house was because it wasn't the house itself he lived in. As Jane and Lisbon stood in front of the back door, the broken house's metaphorical veil slowly slipped, and revealed its true distinctiveness.

"Is this what I think it is?" Lisbon asked, genuinely surprised. Jane gave her a short smile and gestured towards the door.

"After you m'dear," Jane said as they walked through the seemingly normal doorway. The blackened room disappeared in front of them and a cleaner, more modern room materialized in its place. It looked like the reception area of a high-end business and there was at least eight other people waiting in seats.

"What is this place?"

"This is a private business run by Brett Stiles. They work like the human justice system because we Animus's don't like putting our faces in public," Jane said.

"Wizardry Law and Order," Lisbon suggested. Jane chewed the inside of his cheek to silence a snicker. The people waiting in the reception area were awaiting an Empath to be assigned to them. Similar to Animus's, Empaths were able to seek the truth. They weren't, however, able to read minds. They were limited to all and any emotions within a person – no thoughts. They could tell if someone was afraid, lying or being honest, but they couldn't read the truth itself.

Today, it was Stiles himself that Jane wanted to see. They walked up to the receptionist who looked up from her computer with a smile which quickly disappeared when she saw her latest clients. She picked up a phone on the desk and quickly pressed a button.

"Hello Brett, I've got some people to see you," she said. Lisbon gave Jane a questioning look, but he didn't say anything. The receptionist put down the phone and gestured to a frosted glass door. The pair found themselves walking down a corridor, Jane walking half a step ahead of Lisbon, who was trying to keep up while with him while speed reading the silver plaques on the doors. They came to the end of the corridor where there was a dark tinted glass door – it was very gloomy in comparison to the other doors, all wooden and painted bright colours. He knocked twice before entering without any sounds of allowance.

They entered into a large room; it was filled with a large bookcase filled with folders and books, a filing cabinet with open drawers and an unnecessarily large mahogany desk. Behind it, Brett Stiles sat, thumbing through a manila folder. The aged man had snow white hair and tinged pink skin that lined his roughened face that shielded any emotion he had to offer. Lisbon immediately didn't trust him; still, Jane seemed to think this man could be helpful. And he was the expert on these things...

"I was wondering when you would show up," Stiles said, not looking up from his musing.

"It's hard to surprise you, old friend. So I presume you know why we're here," Jane said. Stiles looked up and gave him a smirk.

"You wound me. You want to know what I know about the Angel." he said. Stiles' eyes drifted to Lisbon and his eyebrows rose in surprise.

"My god, I would never have thought I would meet someone like you," Stiles said, placing the folder on the desk and offering his hand which Lisbon ignored.

"Someone like me?" Lisbon asked, her tone more than a little bitter. Stiles realized his words were seen as an insult and began to apologize.

"Forgive me, I mean it's an honor to be in the presence of someone like yourself; not many people have the chance to meet a sorceress." Lisbon relaxed and accepted the answer, but still eyed Stiles cautiously.

"Well, now that we know each other, why don't we get down to business?" Jane said.

"Ah yes, a man on a quest as always, Patrick. Every client in this building knows about both the Angel of Death and you. Scratch that, everyone who has any form of magical ability knows about you. Sources tell me that you evaded capture from the SBI and now that I know you have this lovely lady helping you out, it makes perfect sense on how you made the daring escape," Stiles said with a small chuckle. "Now, the SBI is still on your trail, well, the three you had an encounter with. The official statement is that the SBI is still trying to find any traces of the Angel of Demon, but as you can imagine they've got nothing. The Angel's a ghost - no evidence, no trails and not a single person knows what he looks like. They may as well give up because the SBI doesn't have anyone who could go against theit and live to tell the tale," Stiles said. Jane and Lisbon looked at each other and Lisbon opened her mind.

_"We came all this way to listen to something we already know?"_

Stiles clearly caught onto the silent exchange and gave them a smile.

"Now that we've got the official information out of the way, let's move onto the underground news. Let's begin with the SBI agents. Their names are Agent's Kimball Cho, Wayne Rigsby, and Grace Van Pelt. Van Pelt is a technopath; she's quite impressive from what I've heard. Rigsby is a shapeshifter, which is probably why the bureau uses him for the high profile undercover cases and Cho is a phantom, someone who can become invisible and phase through solid objects. They're all still considered younglings, Cho being the eldest at five centuries. However, they seem pretty determined to track the pair of you down. Now there are two theories, number one being that they are trying to close the case of the human veggies that have recently ended up on the streets. Number two is quite intriguing, and trust me when I say this, I was surprised to hear this theory myself. The SBI is having next to no chance of find the Angel of Death and as it poses a far greater threat than a Sorceress and an Animus, the SBI agents believe that if they find you two, they'll have a better chance at catching the Angel," Stiles said as he paced back and forth behind his desk like the movement would stimulate his memory.

"You can't really think that the SBI would want us to help them. Not saying that I am considering helping them in any way," Lisbon said.

"I can sense the feeling coming from both of you. You want to get to those agents, if not for personal assistance, then to get the files the bureau has on any potential witnesses," Stiles said chuckling like he knew everything.

"We would be able to obtain the information from other sources. The SBI agents aren't capable of going up against a high level wizard, so what are the chances of them going up against whatever this Angel is?" Lisbon asked, starting to dislike Stiles slightly as he kept looking at her in a patronizing way as if he knew exactly what was going on in her head.

"I'm simply telling you that you that the SBI agents seem willing to help you in your search if you offer them an opportunity to join your ranks," Stiles said.

"There are no ranks. We're simply too people looking for the same man and we're trying to avoid formalities as much as possible," Jane said after being quiet for so long.

"And they are people trying to find a solution to a problem that is clearly affecting everyone that I have come in contact with recently. Every single person, a buried fear of the unknown. I ask you Jane as a friend, to find the Angel and get rid of it. I don't know about you but there has been this… aura that everyone seems to be able to feel. Naturally we ignore it, but it's undeniable; I can sense it in everyone, even you two. There's fear, uncertainty and something much deeper," Stiles paused.

"Do continue," Jane said.

"Kill, the desire to kill. We were never a peaceful society. Like humans, built on blood and death. We are feeling the want to destroy and once that feeling is recognized, I fear that people will start acting on their impulses. It could surely devastate the world and the existence of everything and nothing. It would end all creation."

"That's your theory on what's going on?" Jane asked, sceptically.

"Yes. It is merely a theory, but my abilities have never once been wrong before."

"I don't doubt that. That's what I'm worried about," Jane said with a sigh.

"I know I haven't been overly helpful, but I would like us to part on this note. You two are by far a pair of the strongest creatures on Earth. Make sure you keep to the path towards the Angel of Death; if either of you decided to go the other way and turned against us... It would truly mean the end for all of us."

"Well, wasn't that cheerful?" Jane asked as he sat shot gun in Lisbon's car. She gave the man an incredulous look before bringing her eyes back on the road.

"Where would you like to be chaperoned to next?" Lisbon said, deciding not to comment. Jane remained silent for a moment before answering.

"I believe you're familiar with the SBI," Jane said. Lisbon nearly drove the car into a street lamp.

"You can't be serious, Jane. That's insane and there is no way I'm going there," Lisbon said.

"Then you may as well pull over and let me out then," Jane told her. Lisbon couldn't describe how much she wanted to do that; not only to drop him off, but to reverse and run him over, regardless of the fact that there were witnesses everywhere. In spite of her hidden desires, she continued driving towards Sacramento and she could see Jane smirking in the corner of her eye. She limited herself to an eye roll as a response. While Lisbon was one of the few Underworlders that was allowed to venture above, the SBI block was somewhere she hadn't dared to visit and she had really wanted to keep it that way. But if what Stiles had said was right, the SBI could be the break they needed to find the Angel.

It was starting to get dark by the time Lisbon pulled off the main road and motored down a street that led to the Supernatural Bureau of Investigation.

"Ugh," Lisbon said as she felt a slight tug at her innards. She looked at Jane and by the look on his face, he felt the same thing.

"SBI's doing I believe; a barrier of some sorts, although I'm not sure if it's there as a warning to us or a sort of alarm system to the agents," Jane said. Lisbon stopped the car and gaped at him with disbelief.

"You knew it was here?"

"Well I'm not surprised. What Bureau of Investigation would it be if they can't even protect the fort?" Jane said.

"You can't just not tell me these things!" Lisbon said angrily as she turned the car off and pulled the keys out of the ignition.

"Would you have come if I told you beforehand?"

"Definitely not and… oh… clever aren't you?" Lisbon said sarcastically with a scowl as she watched Jane walk towards the tall building.

The feeling of unease grew worse and worse the closer Lisbon got to the building. They were the only ones in the outdoor car park and it was silent. The roads were empty and even the security guards were absent from the front gate. They entered the building and the lobby was also empty. Lisbon and even Jane started to feel nervous and if they were human police enforcers, now would be the time to whip out the hand guns. Everything in Lisbon's body was telling her to get out and she knew that this wasn't going to go down well. They took the stairs instead of the elevator and searched the first couple of floors, but they were bare or life forms.

"Have you mentally searched the building?" Lisbon asked as they trudged up the stairs.

"You wound me, Lisbon..." He brought a hand to his heart as if she had stabbed him in it. "Of course I have and it's telling me they're here… I just don't know where. I think they know what I am and are shielding their minds. Best not to probe any harder, don't want to frighten the kids." The pair exited the stairway and found themselves on the Serious Crimes floor. The layout was similar to every other floor they had been on but Jane felt the presence was stronger here.

_They're here aren't they?_

Lisbon must've seen Jane's eyebrows furrow, a habit that she had picked up on. It would mean his mind was hitting a block and he was trying to push past it. Jane simply nodded and walked down the corridor and into what appeared to be a bullpen, a bullpen that was occupied by four individuals.

"So, I'm assuming you're the head of the CBI. Madeline Hightower, right?" Jane asked. Lisbon hadn't the faintest idea who the woman was so she remained silent and stayed behind Jane.

"Animus, Patrick Jane," Hightower said cautiously. She was clearly afraid of the man who was eyeing her agents, but kept her cool and collected shield up. The agents themselves looked like they wanted to catapult themselves from the room; especially, from what Lisbon could tell, the pretty redheaded woman and the tall man. The Asian man at their side appeared to be calm though. Lisbon wasn't sure what to do, so she decided to let Jane take the reins this time. She wasn't one to negotiate with people she didn't know or trust. The nerves she had been taught to ignore had surfaced and were making her increasingly agitated. It made her wonder why she agreed to follow Jane in the first place.

**Van Pelt, Rigsby and Cho POV**

Hightower and Jane were having the mother of all staring matches and it looked like they were mentally trying to implode each other. None of them had seen their boss like this; the usually calm and collected woman was on edge and tried to keep her eyes on both the Animus and the Sorceress. The dark-haired woman, despite her obvious abilities that could turn the situation very nasty, looked as concerned as the agents. Van Pelt let her eyes wander away from her boss and then locked her gaze with the Sorceress. She didn't see the fearsome creature she imagined, capable of world destruction; she just saw a woman cast into a world of death, loss and corruption. Van Pelt had never met a demon and the Sorceress was apparently raised by them. But she didn't seem evil or scary. She seemed like a soldier; someone who wanted the same things that she wanted, for the horrors of the world to end and for justice to take its place.

Rigsby watched the Sorceress's eyes soften as she looked at his co-worker whose shoulders looked like they were starting to relax. He knew Van Pelt always had good character judgment and if she was calming down then he knew it was safe, for now.

Cho, on the other hand, felt that he couldn't trust Jane nor his Sorceress friend, despite what his co-workers were feeling. They were no longer standing stoically, but were shifting side to side impatiently. As if this showdown wasn't considered stressful or life-threatening anymore. But he wouldn't let himself be naive enough to forget who they were dealing with and what these two people before them could do...

"Jane, enough. I thought we were here to discuss the situation," the Sorceress said softly.

"Quite right. I believe you haven't met my friend here. This is Miss Teresa Lisbon – she's a Sorceress, if you haven't picked up on that yet," Jane said.

"Lisbon," Hightower nodded almost respectfully. "Yes, we do have many things to discuss. I have dismissed the rest of the agents and we won't be disturbed until tomorrow morning."

"Excellent. That means we better get a move on then," Jane said. "But before we start, would you have any tea by any chance?"

* * *

><p><strong>Okay...where to start. I know you lot don't want one of those massive apology AN's so I'll keep it simple. I've just been working hard lately and I would slowly add to this when I would get sick of studying. I'll try not to keep them this short but it was the best I could do. Thanks for everyone who bothered to keep in touch with this. Thanks to my beta! Thanks to SK2 who would check in on me every now and then to make sure I was still functioning like a human being.  
><strong>

**THKer **


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